


Arson's Heat - A Chicago Fire Story.

by LuckyDuck06



Category: Chicago Fire
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-24
Updated: 2018-09-29
Packaged: 2019-07-16 10:11:23
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16083977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuckyDuck06/pseuds/LuckyDuck06
Summary: An experimental program brings a new member into Firehouse 51. Jodie Sinclair’s purpose is to expose the secrets fire can hide, but can she keep her own secrets from coming out?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Set 3 months after the end of season 6. 
> 
> I’m not a fan of Stellaride, I like Stella as a character, I just don’t like Stella & Kelly together. I don’t think they fit, but apparently, the writers of the show think different. They’re entitled to their opinion, it is their show, after all, you are entitled to yours, as I am mine. So in my adaptation of the story, Kelly & Stella are not together, they have remained just friends after Anna died. 
> 
> As I’m writing this it is the hiatus between season 6 & 7\. 
> 
> Also, the Hadley arson storyline from season 2 never happened because I’m borrowing it for my plot because I can. :) Any storyline I borrow from the actual show just assume it never happened in this version until now. 
> 
> Kelly is portrayed in the show & in many stories as a “Ladies Man.” Everyone basically expects him to cheat, including his own mother. That makes me mad, cause I see it differently. (maybe it’s the romantic in me, I don’t know.) Every relationship he has had, he has, in my opinion, committed to, he’s never cheated. He was cheated on by his ex-fiancee, Renee. He is definitely a player when he’s single, but the way I see it when he commits, he does it fully, he just hasn’t found anyone to commit to yet. So that’s the version of Kelly in this story. I like happy endings, so there will be a happy ending to this. 
> 
> I don’t live in the USA, so I’ve tried to avoid any descriptions, locations, etc, etc. 
> 
> Finally, I am not an expert in arson - I am a retired Firefighter of 10 yrs though. I was 21 when I joined & 31 when I retired because I became a single mum. I am also not an expert in anything medical, so anything that is said or done in this story is completely made up because it fits my story. It is make-believe after all. Also, there will be descriptions of violence at different stages throughout the story, maybe the odd sex scene, depending on how I feel about writing that when the time comes. 
> 
> Ok, I think that covers everything. I hope you enjoy. Please let me know what you think.

“Engine 51, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61, Battalion 25 multiple vehicle accident,….”

 

The engines roar to life as the men and women of Firehouse 51 spring into action, once again racing to save someone's life. 

 

 

 

Arriving on scene, Chief Boden and Captain Matt Casey from Truck 81 and Lieutenant Kelly Severide from Squad 3 assess the situation. 

 

“What the hell?” Severide comments. 

 

“I seen what happened! I seen it!” an older lady calls from the group of onlookers. “That car rammed that car on purpose! Then as he was backing up to ram her again he was hit by that truck! Stupid bastard never saw it coming.” She cried out. 

 

“Truck 81, you're on the truck and the driver of that car.” Chief Boden commanded pointing to the car the truck had hit. “Squad 3 you’re on that car.” He then pointed to a custom painted purple 1969 Plymouth Roadrunner 426 CID Hemi that had been T-boned on the passenger side. 

 

Kelly whistled, “That used to be a nice car.” He said as he bent to check on the driver. 

 

“Tell me about it. I loved this car.” Came the whine from a petite brunette sitting behind the wheel, shaking and starting to hyperventilate. Her wide eyes were a hazel green and her curly hair was coming loose from the braid she had it pulled back in. 

 

“Ok, nice slow, deep breaths,” Kelly tells her. “Slow your breathing down.” 

 

She takes several slow deep breaths as he instructed and calmed down a little, although she was still shaking noticeably. 

 

“Ok, can you tell me where you’re hurt?” He asks, 

 

“Umm..” She crinkles her brow as she assesses herself. Kelly can’t help but think it makes her look cute. He quickly snaps back into the moment. “I hit my head and my wrist is screaming at me, but otherwise I think I’m ok.” She tells him. 

 

“Well, hang tight, we’re gonna get you out, ok?” 

 

She nods her head and gives him a tight smile. 

 

 

-//-

 

 

 

_The Following day_

 

 

She limps into Firehouse 51 just as their shift is ending and meets Chief Boden as he’s walking out. 

 

“Chief!” She calls out to him just as Kelly walks out towards his car. 

 

“Hey! Roadrunner, right?” Kelly calls out. 

 

“Right.” She smiles. “I’m really gonna miss that car.”

 

“Ah, the call from yesterday.” Chief Boden remembers. “How are you?” 

 

“Good, slight concussion, fractured wrist, a couple of other bumps and bruises, but overall, feeling very lucky.” 

 

“What can we do for you?” The Chief smiles. 

 

“Well, first, I wanted to say thank you for yesterday.” She says as Casey joins them. 

 

“You’re welcome,” Casey says.

 

“Yeah, no sweat.” Kelly chimes in. 

 

“What about the guy that hit you?” Casey asks. 

 

“He didn’t make it.” She tells them. “Shame cause I wanted to fry his ass in court….Pun intended.” 

 

The Chief raises his eyebrows at her. 

 

“That’s the other reason I’m here.” She says as she extends her hand to shake. “I’m Jodie Sinclair, your new Fire Investigator. I start next shift.” 


	2. Chapter 2

“Casey, Severide, my office.” Chief Boden calls at the start of the following shift. 

 

They follow him in and find Jodie already waiting. She smiles at them. 

 

Chief turns to address them as Severide closes the door to his office. 

 

“We had an…” He pauses. “Unorthodox introduction to Investigator Sinclair last shift. I want to introduce you properly before we have morning briefing with everyone else.” 

 

They nod. 

 

“As you are aware the department has decided to trial a new program for arson, in particular, but hopefully it will streamline a few other issues as well. I’ll let Investigator Sinclair explain.” He said handing over the conversation to Jodie. 

 

“Ok, well first, call me Jodie.” She smiles. “A few of us over at OFI have been campaigning for this program for a while, so I’m really hoping that between us all we can make it a success. There’s three of us in the program, Investigator Lang is at Firehouse 19 and Investigator Williams is at Firehouse 43. The trial will go for 12 months and then we will all get together with the brass and measure its success and decide if it should become a permanent program or not.” She clears her throat. “As you know, the way things are now, there’s a lag between when you guys find a possible arson case and when we can get there to fully check it out. In that time it’s possible for vital evidence to either go missing or be destroyed by the elements. It’s part of the reason why arson cases are so hard to prove. Then there’s evidence that is missed at the scene at the time of the fire. That’s not on you guys..” She says quickly seeing their reactions. “Let me give you an example. It’s things like watching the onlookers. 99% of the time an arsonist is at the scene watching as you go racing into the building. Of course, you would miss that, you’re busy saving lives and the building. But, if I’m there in the background at the time I can scan the crowd. I film them actually so I can go over it again later. I can look at body language, people’s reaction to the fire and if the arsonist is there, chances are good I can pick them out, also that footage can be admitted into evidence. Then there’s the way a fire behaves as it’s burning. You guys write up pretty detailed reports but nothing can compare to us seeing it first hand and it can go a long way into showing the arsonists MO. Once again I film it so I can study it later.” 

 

“What about privacy laws when it comes to filming the crowd?” Casey asks. 

 

“Covered under the arson act. Most people won’t be watching me and probably won’t even know I’ve filmed them, but if someone does kick up a stink the arson act covers it.” She confirmed. 

 

“So, you’ll be coming to every call out?” Severide asks. 

 

“Every call out that is a structure fire, yes. The plus side for you guys is even if it’s not an arson fire, I can go in on your secondary search, confirm your findings as to how it started and write up the report myself, instead of you writing up your reports, me going out days, sometimes weeks later to confirm your findings, writing up another report for insurance, etc. Less paperwork for you and more efficient for the owners wanting to get on with insurance claims.” 

 

“Gotta love that!” Severide laughs.Casey nods. 

 

“Well, safe to say you’ve motivated them into helping you make this program a winner.” Chief Boden smiles. “Personally I think it’s a great initiative and I’m also on board.” 

 

“Thank you, Chief.” 

 

“Shall we go fill in everyone else?” Chief Boden says as he heads for the door. 

 

 

-//-

 

 

 

“Any questions for Investigator Sinclair?” Chief asks after all the introductions and explanations of the program have been given to the rest of the team at the morning briefing. 

 

“That guy that rammed into your car, he was an arsonist?”

 

Jodie looked over at the speaker trying to remember his name. 

 

“Cruz? Right?” She asks and he nods. “Yes, Rod Horn. Lit five fires that I can prove. Three victims. He was going away for a long time, but, well….” 

 

“Now he has to face his victims in the afterlife.” An older guy comments. 

 

“I really hope so….Hermmann?” He nods in confirmation. 

 

“I’ll get better with names soon.” She assures them. 

 

“Just another paper pusher who has no idea what it’s like going into a real fire.” She hears a female firefighter loudly whisper. 

 

“Kitt?” She asks.

 

“Kidd.” Stella corrects her. 

 

“Right, sorry, Kidd. I know a lot of investigators are just that, paper pushers who have no real firefighting experience. I hope that if this program gets the green light, watching you guys go in will give them a better understanding of what you have to face every day. But just so you know, I have had experience. Only a little, compared to you, granted, but I have more understanding than most.” 

 

Jodie raises her left pant leg to reveal the lower half of her leg that has been disfigured and the brace she now wears on a permanent basis.

 

“The limp isn’t from the car accident.” She tells them. “When I was 16, I was caught in a fire started by an arsonist. A burning beam pinned my leg as I was trying to crawl out.” She lowers her pants back down making sure her leg is completely covered. “I also put myself through the Firefighters Academy when I joined OFI, so I knew more of what you did when you went in. My mentor always said I should try to know every aspect of the job as it gives me a better understanding of what to look for when trying to catch an arsonist.” 

 

Stella looks impressed. 

 

“Who was your mentor?” Mouch asks. 

 

“Harry Dickinson.” 

 

“Ah, I know Harry! Good guy, great investigator.” Mouch confirms, leaning back in his chair. 

 

“He taught me everything he knows,” Jodie tells him proudly. 

 

-//-

 

 

“So what was your fastest time at the Academy?” Stella asks as she, Severide and Casey help Jodie carry her file boxes into her newly set up office. 

 

There’s a cot in one corner with a small set of drawers. On the other side of the room is a desk which has her laptop on it, along with her video camera she’ll use to film on the scene. There are also three filing cabinets that have all her case files along the back wall and her toolkit. 

 

“8:45.” Jodie answers. 

 

“So, not a pass. You need seven minutes to pass.” Stella points out. 

 

“No, not a pass, but my aim wasn’t to pass, it was to get the knowledge and a little experience of what you do. Besides, I think 8:45 is reasonable considering.” She points to her disfigured leg. 

 

“I think it’s impressive,” Severide says casually. Stella rolls her eyes. 

 

“High praise coming from mister six minutes flat.” Jodie laughs. 

 

Stella spins and looks at Severide with a shocked look. 

 

“Six minutes? You did it in six minutes? You never told me that!” She accuses. 

 

“That would be bragging.” He laughs. “How did you know Roadrunner?” Kelly asks Jodie. 

 

“Roadrunner? Really? Is that gonna stick?” She laughs.

 

“Probably.” He grins at her. 

 

Jodie continues. “Harry told me. You’re quite the legend in his eyes. You should have heard him when I told him I was coming to 51.” she laughs. ”You have options if you ever decide to hang up your turnout gear. They’d have you as an instructor full time at the Academy in a heartbeat, not to mention OFI would love you with your arson experience.” She tells him. He looks coy. 

 

“Oh please.” Stella laughs shaking her head at Kelly. “What about Casey?”

 

“Oh, Harry is just as impressed with Casey. I think he sees him taking over from Chief Boden when he eventually retires one day.” Jodie smiled at Casey. Casey shrugs. 

 

“Maybe. We’ll see.” 


	3. Chapter 3

She’d been at Firehouse 51 for two weeks. In that time they’d had a couple of kitchen fires, an electrical fire, a kid playing with matches and a nasty domestic where the wife threw a lit candle at her husband hitting the curtains. The makeup session those two had in the back of the ambulance was embarrassing.

 

She was able to close a couple of open arson cases, from before coming to the firehouse, in that time though, so she was happy about that. 

 

 

Kelly poked his head in through her office door. “Hey Roadrunner, you coming to Molly’s tonight?” 

 

She looked up from a pile of photos strewn across her desk. They were of a house fire that she was positive the husband had set with the intention of claiming the insurance money. The wife had come home unexpectedly from a visit to her parents and had been killed in the flames. Jodie just had to figure out how he did it when he was at his place of work at the time of the fire. 

 

She smiled and rolled her eyes at Kelly. Yep, the nickname had stuck, but only Kelly seemed to use it frequently. 

 

He had been really helpful with some of her cases. Sometimes fresh eyes can pick up things that you miss when you’ve been staring at a picture for hours. 

 

Jodie was damn good at her job but she wasn’t infallible and she had no issues with sharing the credit with others. 

Especially when that other was Kelly Severide. _Stop it!_ She admonished herself. 

 

“Can’t, I won’t have a car, it goes in for a service after shift.” 

 

Her position gave her a fire vehicle to drive, which was handy seeing as her car had been crushed beyond repair when it was rammed, she _really_ missed that car, but it also meant she had to go with the service schedule the department demanded instead of being able to book it in when it suited her. It left her without transport for a couple of days. 

 

“I’ll be your ride.” Kelly shrugged. “Text me your address. I’ll pick you up at seven.” 

 

The alarms ringing out didn’t give her a chance to reply. 

 

“Engine 51, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61, Battalion 25, Arson 2, structural fire…..”

 

“They’re playing our song,” Jodie said grabbing her arson kit and following Kelly out to the truck bay. 

 

 

-//-

 

“Do you smell that?” Casey asked removing his helmet. “What is it?” He asked when he got no response from Kelly. 

 

“That’s my badge number.” Kelly panted sitting outside the building. 

 

The fire was out, but it had been a tough call. Kelly had been trapped in the basement after the stairs gave way. He had a twisted ankle but was otherwise unhurt, but it had been close. 

 

“Has to be a coincidence, right?” Casey asked. 

 

Jodie snapped a photo of the number, 1751, scrawled in paint on the side of the structure. 

 

“It might be a coincidence but just in case.” She shrugged. Kelly nodded. 

 

-//-

 

Jodie put on her turnout coat and grabbed her helmet and her toolkit ready to start her investigation once the all clear for the secondary search was given. 

 

When she was inside she set up her lights, attached her tool belt around her waist and got to work. 

 

After a little while, she came across a wire coil, she picked it up with her gloved hand and placed it in her evidence bag after taking a picture of where it was found for evidence later. 

 

“Hey Roadrunner, we’re all packed up.” Kelly came in to tell her. “Are you going to be much longer?” 

 

“A little bit, you guys go.” She smiled up at him. 

 

“You sure?”

 

“Yeah, I won’t be too much longer. Just doing my final go around.” She assured him. 

 

He nodded and headed out to the truck. She heard the engines come to life and a few seconds later, all was quiet. She was alone. 

 

After she was done, she packed her equipment up. As she was heading to the back of her SUV a jogger accidentally ran into her, knocking her and her equipment to the ground. 

 

“Oh Geez! I’m so sorry.” The man apologised as he helped her back up. 

 

“It’s cool. Accidents happen.” Jodie said with a tight smile

 

“Are you alright?”

 

“Yeah, nothing broken.” Jodie checked her equipment and made sure all the evidence she had collected was accounted for and then placed them in her car. 

 

“So, are you a firefighter?” The man was wearing a dark hoodie pulled up over his head. 

 

“Fire Investigator,” Jodie said watching the guy carefully. 

 

“So, what? This was on purpose?” He asked, pointing to the building. 

 

“It was.” She confirmed. 

 

“Wow, some people are messed up. I hope you get the guy who did it.” 

 

“I always do.” She told him. 

 

“Good. Well, sorry again.” He started jogging down the road. 

 

“No worries,” Jodie said as she watched him go. 

 

Not thinking any more of it, Jodie got into her car and went back to the firehouse.

 

-//-

 

 

“Severide! We got trouble, get out here!” They all heard Hermmann scream out from the front of the firehouse. 

 

“What is it?” Kelly called as he jogged to the open doors. 

 

“Your car!”

 

“What the hell!” Kelly cried as he ran towards his burning car. Before he got too close it exploded into a ball of flames. 

 

“Smell that?” Casey asked once the flames were out. 

 

“Yeah, it’s the same chemical,” Kelly answered. 

 

“Now, we know,” Jodie said from behind them. “Once the car has cooled some more I’ll take a closer look at it” She glanced at Kelly as she turned to go back to her office. “Sorry about your car.” She said with sympathy. 

 

-//-

 

Jodie had just started her preliminary look over Kelly’s car when she spotted the wire coil in the back. Sighing, she took a photo and then placed it into the evidence bag, writing the details of the case on the front of the bag. 

 

“Hey,” Kelly said softly, cringing at his car. 

 

“Hey. The two fires are definitely connected.” Jodie confirmed holding up the evidence bag with the coil. 

 

“What’s that?” Kelly asked taking the bag. 

 

“The wire coil holds a styrofoam cup filled with something like brake fluid. It sits over an oxidiser of some sort and there you have a homemade accelerant. I found one exactly the same at the structure fire.” 

 

“So, we have MO?” Kelly asks handing the bag back to Jodie. 

 

“We have something to go on, yes. If someone known has used this coil before I will find them in the system. I will figure out who it is.” She promises putting her hand on his shoulder as a comforting gesture. 

 

He places his hand over hers and nods as he turns to go back into the firehouse, leaving her to work on his car. 

 

 

-//-

 

 

“John Westminster. What do you know about him? “ Jodie asked as Kelly came into her office a couple of hours later. She spun her laptop around so Kelly could see the guys picture. 

 

“He’s an arsonist Benny put away a few years back.” Kelly sat in a chair in front of her desk. 

 

“He was released a month ago.” She tells him. “Just before the fires started.”

 

“So, he wants revenge on Benny by coming after me?” 

 

“Maybe. It’s worth checking out.”Kelly nodded. 

 

“So, how do you feel about motorbikes?” Kelly asked out of the blue with a cheeky grin. 

 

“Umm..” She raises an eyebrow at him. “Why?”

 

“Well, your car will be in the shop and mine is a smouldering heap outside, so the only transport we have to get to Molly’s tonight is on the back of my motorbike.” 

 

“You still want to go?” She asked him. 

 

“Yeah, why not? I’m not going to let some firebug stop me from having a good time.” 

 

Suddenly feeling a little adventurous she bit her lip and nodded. “Okay.” She agreed. 

 

Kelly sucked in a breath at the sight of her biting her lip. 

 

-//-

 

“This is where you live?” Kelly asked incredulously when she opened the door to her motel room. 

 

“Temporarily until I find a place.” 

 

“It’s a dump.” He laughed and then eyed a dodgy character walking passed to the room next door. “And definitely not a safe area.” 

 

“It’s around the corner from the firehouse.” She defended. 

 

She pulled on a leather jacket, tossing her long curls out from under the collar, and grabbed her purse, opening it and taking out her ID and some money, putting them into her jeans pocket and throwing her purse back inside. 

 

She wore minimal makeup as always but with her hair out of her normal braid, she looked stunning in Kelly’s opinion. 

 

“Have you been looking at places?” Kelly asked as they walked to his bike. 

 

“A little. Haven’t found one I like yet.” He handed her a helmet. “I’ll know it when I see it.” She tells him at his sceptical look. 

 

“It’s a vibe thing?” He asked.

 

“Exactly.” She throws her leg over the bike after him, puts her arms tightly around his waist and Kelly brings the bike to life. 

 

-//-

 

“That was so much fun!” She squealed after taking off her helmet and running her fingers through her hair to get rid of any helmet hair she may have. 

 

Kelly laughs taking off his helmet as well. “I like this side of you.” He tells her. “You’re so serious at work, this is refreshing.” 

 

She shrugs. “That’s the job though right? Outside I get to be more me.” She grins. 

 

“Well, I like both sides of you.” Kelly throws his arm around her shoulders as they walk into Molly’s. 

 

-//-

 

_A figure, dressed all in black, hides in the shadows across the road from Molly’s watching the couple go inside. He was the main target, but she was becoming an issue he would have to get rid of as well._

 


	4. Chapter 4

The music was playing at a nice level. Loud enough to know what song was playing, but not so loud as to stop a conversation. 

It was an inviting, family orientated bar. Comfortable. 

 

They ordered a couple of drinks - him a beer and her a Bailey’s on ice - and sat down in one of the booths that curled around in a corner, making it all one chair.

 

“That’s such a girly drink.” He laughed taking a swig of his beer. 

 

“Good thing I’m a girl then huh?” She laughed. 

 

“Hey!” Sylvie called out as she came towards them. 

 

“Hi, Sylvie.” Jodie smiled at the blonde. “Join us?” She moved over so Sylvie could sit. 

 

Cruz and Otis also came over and sat without invitation. “Hey, guys. What’s happening?” Cruz said eyeing Sylvie. 

 

Kelly moved along the seat, making room for them and bringing him closer to Jodie on the other side. 

 

Capp sat down next to Otis, then they were joined by Stella. Jodie found herself sitting very close to Kelly, who had put his arm around the back of the booth to allow a little bit more room. She leaned forward to take her jacket off as she was suddenly feeling very warm. She tingled when she felt Kelly’s fingers at the back of her neck, helping her. 

 

“Thanks.” She said a bit awkwardly. 

 

“So tell us a bit about yourself. We haven’t really had a chance to talk much since you started.” Stella inquired watching Kelly interact with Jodie. 

 

Jodie was caught off guard. “Oh, umm, there’s not much to tell really. I’m pretty boring.” 

 

“I doubt that.” Kelly said quietly beside her. 

 

“Parents? What do they do?” Stella persisted. 

 

“No longer around,” Jodie told them trying to be matter of fact. 

 

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Sylvie said putting a comforting hand on her shoulder. Jodie smiled and shrugged. 

 

“Siblings?”

 

“Only child.”

 

“Have you always wanted to be an arson investigator?” Stella continued. 

 

“Since I was sixteen.” 

 

“What is this? The inquisition?” Kelly asked Stella. 

 

“What? I’m just trying to get to know our newest member of the team better.” Stella shot back. But Kelly knew better, giving Stella a warning look. She just shrugged at him. 

 

“Ever been married? Cause Kelly has.” Stella continued pushing her luck. 

 

“Only briefly though,” Sylvie confirmed feeling the tensions rise between Stella and Kelly and wanting to defuse the situation. She liked Jodie and Kelly seemed to like Jodie and Sylvie thought of Kelly as a good friend and didn’t want to see things get awkward between them. 

 

“I have,” Jodie answered. 

 

“What happened?” Stella asked with some curiosity. 

 

“KIA in Afghanistan four years ago,” Jodie replied. 

 

“Sorry,” Kelly whispered giving her a hug. He knew what it was like to lose the person you loved to something out of your control. 

 

Stella watched Kelly give Jodie the hug and noticed he left his arm around her but decided to back off after that. 

 

-//-

 

They were back at her motel walking towards her room when she felt like they were being watched. She turned and scanned the street but saw nothing. 

 

“You okay?” Kelly asked looking around as well. 

 

“Yeah. I’m good.” She said bringing her attention back to him. “Thanks for tonight. It was good to get out. I haven’t done that in a while, and it was my first time on a motorbike, so that was cool.” She grinned. 

 

“Really? We’ll have to go for a better ride, out to the lake or something one day.”He offered. 

 

“I’d like that.” She turned to unlock the door to her room.

 

“You know, I have a spare room at my place, own bathroom. You could stay there if you wanted until you find something you like. It’s gotta be better than here.” 

 

“I…..I don’t know.” She said suddenly nervous. “I mean, I wouldn’t want to impose or, you know, cramp your style or anything.” Implying she knew about his reputation. 

 

Kelly raised his hands in a surrender motion with a grin. “You wouldn’t be imposing and anything you’ve heard about my personal life has been exaggerated.” He told her with a grin. “We’re friends, right? Friends look out for each other.” 

 

“Yeah, we’re friends.” She confirmed although her heart sank at being put into the friend zone. _It’s probably for the best_ , she thinks to herself. 

 

 

“Think about it,” Kelly said turning to his bike. “Night Jodie” He waved smiling at her. 

 

“Night Kelly.” She said wistfully going into her room. 

 

-//-

 

 

“Where are you off to, Roadrunner?” Kelly called out as Jodie started her car. 

 

“Get in, the cops have John Westminster in custody.” She told him. 

 

“Capp! Cover for me.” Kelly yells out as he climbs into the passenger seat. 

 

They walk into the police station and talk to the detective in charge. 

 

“Anything to tie him to the fires?” Jodie asks, all business-like. 

 

“Nothing, he alibied out.” The detective tells her just as some other cops lead “Big John” out of the interrogation room. 

 

“Hey! It’s the arson investigators son!” Big John taunts Kelly as he starts to go past them. 

 

“Two buildings? Huh? Do you know how many people you could’ve killed? How many of my men?” Kelly returned angrily, pushing the bigger man up against the wall. 

 

“Kelly! Hey! Hey!” Jodie admonished him, pulling him away. 

 

“He was in another state for the first fire.” The detective informed them, exasperated. “The MO is similar but the guy doesn’t have the guts to light up a car outside a firehouse.” 

 

Jodie nods an apology to the detective and leads Kelly outside. 

 

“What was that?!” She spun around on him. “I brought you as a courtesy, Kelly!” She crossed her arms. 

 

“I know, I know. I’m sorry. I just…” He sighs. “When I think of the lives these guys don’t give a shit about.” He rubbed his hands over his face. 

 

“I get it. I do. But you can’t go off half-cocked like that. If you’re going to help me get whoever this is, you’ve gotta keep your cool.” 

 

“Yeah, okay,” Kelly says and gets back into Jodie’s car. 

 

-//-

 

“Squad 3, Truck 81, Engine 51, Ambulance 61, Battalion 25, Arson 2, structure fire…”

 

-//-

 

The flames were out and they headed in for the secondary search. 

 

“Here!” Kelly called out to Jodie, pointing to the wire coil when she reached him. 

 

“Damn it!” She took the required pictures and collected the evidence. “It’s definitely not Big John. He’s in custody for parole violation after he went interstate.”

 

“So, a copycat?” Kelly asked. 

 

“Looks like it.” 

 

“I was looking at our dangerous buildings list earlier,” Kelly told her. 

 

“The one that lists all the buildings that are really tricky if they catch on fire?” She asks him. He nods. 

 

“All the buildings so far are on that list and in our district.” He pointed out. 

 

“You think this is a firefighter?” She asked following his train of thought. 

 

“Could be. Every station has the same list and most firefighters know about different arson cases. It wouldn’t be hard for one to pick a known arsonist’s MO.” 

 

Jodie thought about that for a minute. It made sense. Damn, she didn’t want to go down this path again. But if Kelly was right, this person needed taking down asap. 

 

“Let’s look at what we know.” She said putting her equipment away. “All the buildings are on the list. The MO is similar to a known arsonist and whoever this is, is targeting you in particular. Who did you piss off enough that they’d do this?” She asked. 

 

“No idea.” He looks bewildered. 

 

-//-

 

Jodie turned off the light in her motel room and climbed into bed. She really needed to find a place soon. She’d sold the house she and Nick, her husband, had, so money wasn’t the issue. She just found it hard to be in a house without someone else being there as well. After Nick died, she had moved back in with Harry and his wife, Maureen, but they lived too far away from Firehouse 51, so she had come to stay in this motel. 

 

Kelly was right, it was a dump. But it was cheap and close by to her work and there was always noise. 

 

Maybe she should take Kelly up on his offer. 

 

She sighed as she lay in the dark, rolling over onto her back to stare at the ceiling. 

 

The problem was she could see herself really falling for Kelly Severide, he reminded her a lot of her Nick. Not in looks as much as in his heroism, confidence and charm. 

 

In the four years since Nick’s death, she had been on one date. That was a couple of months ago, before coming to 51. The guy was in dispatch and had seemed nice enough at first. But it wasn’t long before he started to creep her out in a big way. So when he asked her out a second time she turned him down. 

 

She sighed again. Her life had really taken a turn after the fire when she was sixteen. In some ways for the better, but she missed the idea of what could have been had she been able to stick to her original plans. 

 

Turning onto her side, she finally drifted off to sleep. 

 

-//-

 

The sun wasn’t even over the horizon when she was woken by the sound of crackling, popping and glass breaking and the high pitched squeal of a smoke alarm. As she came awake fully she realised she could smell smoke. A lot of smoke. 

 

Jerking up and starting to cough, she looked around seeing the front of her room almost completely engulfed in fire. 

 

“Shit!” 

 

She jumped out of bed feeling a bit disorientated at first. She looked to the front door, her only exit, to see her path blocked by flames. 

 

Coughing badly now she headed for the only other window apart from the ones near the front door, the bathroom. 

 

Climbing up onto the toilet seat she reached to open the window. It was jammed. 

 

“Of course.” She spluttered. 

 

She ran back into the main room and grabbed the jug from the kitchenette. Returning to the bathroom she threw it against the glass window. Both broke. 

Using what was left of the handle she pushed as much glass as she could from the frame, then grabbed a towel to put over the sill to try to stop herself being cut to ribbons and hauled herself up, using her good leg to propel her over. Thank goodness this was only a single story motel. 

She crashed to the ground, coughing and wheezing as the sirens came around the corner. 


	5. Chapter 5

Kelly’s bike skidded to a stop. He ran up the motel driveway that was illuminated by red and blue flashing lights. He found Jodie sitting in the back of the ambulance wearing an oxygen mask. 

“Are you alright?” He asked frantically, climbing in the back of the ambulance with her.

She started to pull the mask off to answer when the gruff paramedic stopped her. 

“Smoke inhalation, a nasty cut to her arm and she’s re-fractured her wrist. She should be fine but we’re taking her to Med.” The woman in her early forties told him. Kelly nodded. “You riding with us, Severide?” 

 

“Yeah.” He closed the doors and they were off, sirens blaring. 

 

-//-

 

“How’d you know?” Jodie asked Kelly a while later once she was breathing easier, had her wrist re-plastered and the glass removed from the cut on her opposite arm and six stitches put in. 

 

“Scanner. I’ve been listening out for fires that might be connected to our arsonist.” He admitted. “I heard the address of the motel and nearly had a heart attack.” He grinned at her. 

 

“Your bike…” She worried.

 

“Is at the motel. We’ll catch a cab from here and I’ll go get it later.” He soothed her. 

 

She looked up at him from the bed. “So, about that offer to move in with you?” She asked.

 

He laughed. “Yeah, that still stands.” 

 

“Thanks.” 

 

-//-

 

They went to Jodie’s storage unit so she could get some of her things to replace what she lost in the fire, including her spare leg brace. She’d have to get fitted for a new one as the old one pinched in a couple of spots. 

 

“It’s only a small unit,” Kelly observed. 

 

“Yeah, well, I didn’t have much. I sold all the furniture we used to have. I only kept some sentimental stuff and my clothes, so…..” Jodie shrugged as she opened the door. 

 

Inside were a dozen or so of neatly stacked boxes, all marked with what was contained inside. She opened a couple of the boxes and pulled clothes out, putting them into the suitcase she asked Kelly to bring from his place. She also put in the new toiletries they had stopped for on the way to the storage shed. 

 

Kelly looked inside one of the boxes. He pulled out a photo frame that held a picture of a smiling Jodie standing next to a guy about his height but with lighter hair cut into a military-style crew cut. 

 

“That was taken when I graduated from the Academy,” Jodie said softly. 

 

“He looks really proud of you,” Kelly noted. 

 

“He was. Made his whole platoon come out for the day to celebrate.” She laughed. 

 

“They were your family,” Kelly said matter of factly. 

 

“Yeah, they were.” Her voiced cracked ever so slightly. 

 

“Sorry,” Kelly said putting the photo back in its place. 

 

She waved her hand in an ‘it’s okay’ gesture. 

 

Kelly stepped forward, putting his hands on her shoulders and making sure she was looking directly at him. 

 

“You have another family now.” He told her gently. “We can’t replace that one.” He indicated the picture again. “But we can become a new one if you want us.” _‘If you want me’_ , he thought to himself. 

 

She nodded and stepped into a hug with him. “Thank you.” She whispered.

 

“Well, I think that’s all I need for the moment.” She said stepping out of the hug and looking around, wiping a lone tear away. 

 

-//-

 

When she walked into Kelly’s apartment, it hit her. That feeling she had been looking for, the vibe Kelly had alluded to the night they went to Molly’s. She was home. 

 

-//-

 

 

“This was found at the scene.” Chief Boden held the now very familiar wire coil out to show Jodie and Kelly at the start of the following shift. “It would seem you have also been targeted by our arsonist.” 

 

“Awesome,” Jodie replied sarcastically. 

 

“Are you sure you should be here right now?” Chief asked worriedly. 

 

“I’m sure, Chief, really. I’d be bouncing off the walls at the apartment. I’m better off here, doing something.” She assured him. 

 

“Okay.” He relented. 

 

“I’d like to borrow Kelly for a couple of hours if that’s okay Chief? I want him to go over the footage I took at each scene, see if anyone grabs his attention. He has a theory that this could be a firefighter.” 

 

“Really?” Chief asked surprised, looking between the both of them. 

 

“It’s possible,” Kelly said and then explained his theory. 

 

“It has merit, we need to check out the idea.” Jodie asserted. 

 

“Okay then. Capp can cover if we get a call that’s non-arson related. This needs to be a priority.” Chief Boden agreed. 

 

-//-

 

They poured over the footage on Jodie’s laptop frame by frame, stopping occasionally to look closer at someone, but hadn’t found anything of significance so far. 

 

“Is that someone behind that tree?” Kelly asked. 

 

Jodie looked closer. “Yeah, it looks like it. Let me skip ahead a bit to see if we can get a better look at them.” She let the footage play but she only caught a side view of the hooded figure before they disappeared. 

 

She freezes the video and prints it out. 

 

“Let’s look at the next fire.” She closed that video file and opened the next one and they started the process over again. 

 

“There!” Kelly says and she stops the video. It’s a front on view of the same hooded figure, but he’s too far away to get a better look at him. 

 

Again, Jodie freezes the video and prints it out. 

 

“Okay, next one.” She says opening the final file of video footage. 

 

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me!” Kelly exclaims as a perfect shot of the hooded figure comes into frame. 

 

“That’s the jogger that ran into me after the first fire.” Jodie breaths out slowly. 

 

“That’s Kevin Hadley,” Kelly tells her, standing up from her desk and starting to pace her office. “He’s a firefighter, used to be on Squad until Boden kicked him out a few years ago.” 

 

-//-

 

 

They both enter the Chief’s office. 

 

“It’s Hadley!” Kelly tells him agitated. 

 

“Kevin Hadley?” Chief looks incredulous. 

 

“I got him on video at all fires,” Jodie confirms. “And I can place him at the first fire personally.” She tells Chief Boden about her seemingly innocent run-in with the jogger they now know is Kevin Hadley. 

 

Chief Boden picks up the phone on his desk. “Get me the CPD.”

 

-//- 

 

“CPD is swamped, Chief. They said they will be in touch as soon as they can.” Chief Boden’s new assistant informed him. 

 

The alarms cut off his reply. 

 

“Engine 51, Truck 81, Squad 3, Ambulance 61, Arson 2, Battalion 25….” 

 

“Damn it!” The Chief yelled as they ran for the vehicles. 

 

-//-

 

“Be careful,” Jodie called to Kelly as he was masking up to go inside the burning building.

 

“Copy that.” He nodded at her, heeding her worried warning. 

 

Jodie pulled her video camera out and turned it on, scanning the crowd of onlookers that had gathered around. She was looking for the hooded figure of Hadley. 

 

She sees him from a distance. She uses the zoom on the camera to get as close as she can. He waves at her, turns and walks away. Jodie lowers the camera in shock at his boldness. 

 

-//-

 

They pulled the young woman from the basement just before the whole building went up in flames. She was burned down one side of her body. 

The Paramedics load her into the ambulance and speed off, lights and sirens all the way. 

 

-//-

 

“Fire’s out Chief,” Casey said as he came out of the four-story building. “Found another two coils.” He held the bits of curled wire up for inspection. 

 

“Hadley was here,” Jodie informed them as Kelly walked over downing a bottle of water. “He actually waved at me!” 

 

“He’s back.” Casey said looking over Chief’s shoulder. 

 

Kelly stormed over to him. “You son of a bitch! That women’s going to spend the next six months in the burns unit because of you!” He threw his gloves off and grabbed Hadley by the collar. 

 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Hadley responded calmly. 

 

“ The hell you don’t! We know you started that fire!” Kelly spat at him. 

 

Chief Boden and Casey pulled Kelly away. 

 

“Prove it.” Hadley laughed. 

 

“Oh, we already have,” Kelly told him.

 

Hadley looked over at Jodie. 

 

“Don’t you look at her! Look at me!” Kelly yelled as Hadley wandered away from the scene. 

 

“Okay, you do not stay here alone.” Chief pointed at Jodie. “You’ve already had one encounter with him at a scene, not to mention he tried to take you out at the motel, now he knows we’re onto him, I don’t want you encountering him again on your own.” Jodie agreed. 

 

“I’ll stay with her,” Kelly said, a little calmer. 

 

“Me too.” Casey volunteered. “He won’t try to take us all on.” 

 

The rest of Firehouse 51 packed up after they finished their secondary search and left Kelly and Casey to guard Jodie as she finished gathering all the evidence she could find to nail Hadley. 

 

-//-

 

Jodie finished packing up her equipment. 

 

“Here, I’ll take that for you,” Casey said as he grabbed the toolbox from her. “I’ll put it in the back of your car.”

 

“Thanks, Casey.” 

 

She started to do her final check through to make sure she’d left nothing behind. 

 

“All clear?” Kelly asked. 

 

“All clear.” she confirmed and they made their way down the stairs to the next floor. 

 

They cleared the next floor and went down the stairs to the second floor.

 

Jodie looked out the window and saw Casey on the phone. She turned to find Hadley standing in front of her pointing a gun. 

 

“Don’t say a thing, don’t even breath.” He hissed at her. 

 

Kelly walked into the room and Hadley quickly grabbed Jodie, putting the gun to her head. “Don’t.” He growled at Kelly. 

 

“Now, we’re going to quickly and quietly go out the back of the building.” He instructed. Kelly and Jodie complied. 

 

He pushed Jodie into the driver's seat of his beat up old truck that was parked behind the building, getting in behind her with the gun still pointed at her head. 

 

“Get in.” He told Kelly, pointing to the passenger front seat. Kelly got in and closed the door. “Drive.” Hadley spat. 

 

Jodie started the pickup. “Where?” She asked, her voice quivering. 

 

“Turn right at the end up here and drive straight until I say.” 

 

“Why’re you doing this?” Kelly asked him glancing back. 

 

“Shut up!” Hadley yelled. “Not a word. Got it?” 

 

Kelly turned back, glancing at Jodie. She was breathing hard. 

 

They drove in silence except for Hadley giving Jodie directions. They finally pulled up to an old abandoned warehouse that was in a large industrial park. Jodie put the pickup into park. 

 

“Get out,” Hadley instructed them. He got out, still holding the gun on Jodie. 

 

Hadley directed them inside through a maze of rooms and down a flight of stairs. At the bottom, they went through another door and entered a room with no windows. 

 

“Why are you doing this, Hadley?” Kelly asked again. “You were a damn good firefighter.” 

 

“Why? Are you forgetting you kicked me off Squad?” Hadley yelled. 

 

“That was years ago! Why are you doing this now?” Kelly demanded. 

 

Hadley pushed Kelly back against the wall, shoving the gun under Kelly’s chin. 

 

Jodie froze. 

 

“Do you understand what it’s been like since you kicked me out? Regular work has been rather hard to come by.” 

 

“That’s your own fault, Hadley,” Kelly told him. 

 

“You think you’re smarter than me. You’ve always thought you were better, the great Kelly Severide. Do you know what it’s like living in your shadow? Everywhere I go, it’s Severide this or Severide that. Wow! You worked with Kelly Severide? What did you do to get kicked out of his squad unit? I didn’t deserve that! There’s only so much a guy can take before he just…..snaps!” Hadley started to sound a little deranged. 

 

“Your beef is with me, let Jodie go,” Kelly commanded. “This isn’t worth it, man. Stop now, so we can all leave here alive!” 

 

“You’re not in charge here!” Hadley screamed at him and pushed him down into a kneeling position in front of the wall. He shoved Jodie over beside Kelly and made her kneel too. 

 

Kelly grabbed her hand. “It’s gonna be okay.” He tried to assure her. She was visibly shaking. But she gave him a tight smile, trying to hold it together. 

 

“Oh no, no, no. She’s just like you, Kelly. Thinks she’s better than anyone else, has to be the best at everything she does. _‘Hope you get the guy. I always do.’_ Do you remember that?” Hadley grabs her chin and forces her to look at him. “Yeah, I checked you out too. Know your enemy, right? Dead hubby, dead mummy, daddy in prison for killing mummy and nearly you all those years ago. How did it feel watching your mother burn? Hey?” Hadley taunted her. 

 

Tears streamed down Jodie’s face, she couldn’t stop them, but she didn’t respond to him. 

 

“Stop it!” Kelly growled. 

 

“How about, no.” Hadley laughed. He looked at Jodie again. “Everyone you love dies! Why is that?”

 

Jodie sucked in a breath to hold back her sob. 

 

“She’s a real survivor, this one, Kelly!” Hadley exclaimed, waving the gun between the two of them. “I mean, I can see why you’re attracted to her. Why you can’t wait to fuck her.” 

 

Kelly glared at him. “I’ve been watching you, I mean, blind Freddy can see you’ve got it bad for her.” Hadley laughed. “Let’s see her survive this! Let’s see how you feel when something you hold dear is taken from you for no reason!” Hadley raised the gun, aiming it at Jodie. Kelly dives in front of her as Hadley pulls the trigger, taking the bullet in her place. He falls to the ground with a loud grunt.   


“KELLY!” Jodie screams. 


	6. Chapter 6

“Kelly! Kelly!” Jodie continues screaming, turning him over to find where he was hit, He didn’t respond, lying lifeless on the floor. “Oh God no! Please!” She said frantically grappling with his turnout coat to see better. “Please don’t leave me.” She whispers, crying. 

 

Hadley grabs her and forces her to her feet. She fights him best she can but he’s bigger and stronger. He pulls her out of the room ignoring her protests and her struggles to get back to Kelly. 

 

-//-

 

Kelly sucked in a deep breath as he regained consciousness. He grunted at the pain that shot through his chest with the action of filling his lungs. 

The bullet was lodged in his radio that was turned off and hung across his shoulder. He was going to have one hell of a bruise, but he was alive. 

 

He could hear Jodie yelling his name and struggling against Hadley as he pulled her further into the warehouse. 

 

He got to his feet and followed them, staying out of sight so he could have the element of surprise. He figured Hadley thought he was dead. 

 

-//- 

 

Hadley pulled Jodie into a large room and onto a huge pile of what smelled like chlorine. She’d gone into shock and had stopped struggling against him. He turned and picked up a large container of gasoline. 

 

“See this?” He said holding the container up in front of her. She barely glanced at it. 

 

“All I have to do is drop this and the whole city block is gone.” He laughed, sounding like he had finally completely lost all sense of reason. “It’ll be over soon.” He whispered in her ear. 

 

He started to lift the container when Kelly came out of nowhere with a crowbar. He smacked Hadley upside the head, sending him flying to the other side of the room, taking Jodie with him off the chlorine. Some of the gasoline leaked from the cap of the container and ignited Hadley’s clothes. 

 

Kelly grabbed Jodie and dived out of the way of the flames, they crashed to the ground, Kelly shielding Jodie. 

 

The sudden movement seemed to snap Jodie back to the moment. She looked at Kelly incredulously. 

 

“Kelly?” She seemed uncertain. 

 

“It’s me, I’m okay, you’re okay.” He told her gently as she reached up to touch his face. A loud sob left her as she smashed her lips against his in a desperate kiss. 

 

-//- 

 

 

Behind them, they heard movement. Chief Boden, Casey, Capp and some members of CPD came crashing through the door. Casey and Capp went to work putting out the flames still consuming Hadley’s clothes. He was badly burned and non-responsive. 

 

“He’s alive,” Casey told them as he checked for a pulse. 

 

-//-

 

They watched quietly as Hadley was loaded into the ambulance and taken to the hospital. 

 

Kelly and Jodie were wrapped in a blanket together, as Jodie seemed to have a hard time letting go of Kelly’s arm at the moment. Kelly was happy to indulge her. 

 

“How’d you find us?” He asked Chief Boden. 

 

Chief pointed to Jodie’s radio. “Someone was smart enough to lock her radio on in transmit mode and turn the volume all the way down. We could hear everything from the time Hadley took you.” He explained. “The problem we had was finding which building he took you into, it’s a maze here.” 

 

Kelly kissed the top of Jodie’s head. “You saved us, Roadrunner.” He said quietly. 


	7. Chapter 7

“Come on, we’re going for a ride,” Kelly said in a no-nonsense manner as he grabbed his jacket. 

 

Jodie looked up at him from her spot on the lounge where she was looking at some trashy magazine. 

 

They were on the second day of their forced furlough after the Hadley incident. She’d been quiet ever since they had left the warehouse where Hadley had tried to kill them. Kelly had heard her pacing the apartment both nights. Hell, he was having trouble sleeping as well. 

 

Jodie had gone from clinging to him in those first few hours after to avoiding contact with him as much as possible since. 

 

Chaplin Orlovsky had come round the day before offering his services with counselling, but Jodie wasn’t ready to talk about it. 

 

Feeling as though she had no choice, Jodie sighed as she got up from the couch and went and retrieved her jacket from her room. 

 

She climbed on the bike behind him, grabbing a handful of his jacket in each hand to hang on to but keeping a distance between their bodies. Kelly hated it but didn’t say anything, just started the bike. 

 

They weaved in and out of the city traffic and then out through the suburbs until they finally hit the highway where things were starting to become more rural. 

 

The day was warm and sunny and Kelly couldn’t wait to smell the fresh air up near the lake. He was hoping a day at the cabin would do them both a world of good. 

 

“This way.” He said after they had parked the bike and removed their helmets. He led the way down a track to a rocky outcrop overlooking the lake. The view was beautiful. 

 

They sat down in silence and just stared into the distance for a while. 

 

“I’ve lost two of my best friends to the job,” Kelly told her quietly. “Andy, I’d known since school, and Shay, who was a paramedic at 51.” He sighed. 

 

“After Shay, I was in a pretty bad place. I was spinning. Drinking too much, making bad choices. I went to Vegas and got married.” He laughed, shaking his head. “I was on a train one night after drinking too much, there were a handful of other passengers. Next thing the train stops in this tunnel and there were gunshots ringing out in the carriage in front. Everyone was running away, so, of course, I start going towards them to see what was going on.”

 

She looks over at him, listening. 

 

“Anyway, there was this gangbanger waving his gun around. He’d shot the guard and the train driver had a bullet in her shoulder. I managed to tackle the guy and got the driver off the train. We ran through the tunnel, bullets flying everywhere.” He stopped for a minute. 

 

“Then there was the time we had a gang come into the firehouse with guns. They took us all hostage..” 

 

“Is this supposed to be making me feel better?” Jodie asked incredulously, interrupting him. 

 

Kelly smiled. “My point is we can’t control when bad stuff happens, but we can control how we handle it. How we push through it and come out the other side. That’s something I’ve learned the hard way. We’ve gotta make each day count, live it the best way we can because we don’t know when our time is coming.” 

 

“How many times?” Jodie demanded. 

 

“How many times what?” Kelly asked confused. 

 

“How many times do I have to push through the bad stuff, come out the other side, only to have something bad happen again?” She asked angrily. 

 

“Talk to me,” Kelly whispered after the silence started to draw out again. “If you can’t talk to me, talk to someone. I can see you’re starting to spin out. I know the signs.” 

 

Jodie looked away, out over the lake again. Kelly sighed, worried. 

 

“My father was a monster.” She spoke quietly wiping at her tears. “He used to beat the crap out of us.”

 

Kelly stayed silent. 

 

“When he was at work, talking to his mates, he would gush about us, tell them all about any achievements, but at home,….at home, he was a monster.” She fiddled with her hair, a nervous habit. 

 

“Finally, when I was about 12, my mum snuck us out. We left everything behind, moved far away, changed our last names. And for a while, it was good, ya know? Normal. I even got a scholarship to the School of Arts with my dancing and made friends for the first time. Mum got a job, things were great.” She took a deep shaky breath. 

 

“Then when I was 16, I came home from school one day and found mum unconscious and tied up on the floor. I started to run to her, but he grabbed me from behind. I was shaking so bad, I couldn’t fight him. He tied me up and hit me over the head. I didn’t lose consciousness but I was dazed pretty good. He just laughed and lit the house on fire and walked out, like we were nothing.” Her voice broke. 

 

“He’d tied my hands at the front of me, so after a bit, I managed to untie my ankles. The house was fully engulfed by this stage. I tried to crawl to my mum, but that’s when the beam came down and pinned my leg. I’ve never felt such pain and the smell of the flesh burning…… I’ll never forget that.” She shivered. 

 

“I couldn’t get to mum, I watched part of the ceiling fall on her. She never woke, so I guess I can be glad about that. I thought I was going to die, I just laid there, giving up.” She took a deep breath. 

 

“That’s when a firefighter called Angus came in and found me. He and his team got the beam off and got me out.” She went quiet again for a few minutes, trying to collect herself. 

 

“Then I met Nick.” She sniffed. “He was at the hospital I went to to get my leg brace. I was 18, he was 21. He was visiting a friend who worked there, already a soldier. He was charming and funny and he completely swept me off my feet.” She gave a sad laugh. “He didn’t care about my leg or my past, he just saw me, for the first time, someone just saw me.” She blew out a breath. 

 

“We’d been married just over a year and talking about starting a family. He was home from duty for a little while but was on base. I came home one day, walked through the door and was grabbed. My father drove the knife in before I could take a breath to scream. He’d escaped from prison and no one had told me.” She wiped the stream of tears falling. 

 

“He left me on the kitchen floor, bleeding out. Nick came home and found me and called an ambulance.” She really started to shake now. Kelly wanted to reach out but thought better of it. 

 

“I’d found out that day I was pregnant. I had pink and blue balloons in my bag I was going to decorate the house with to surprise Nick. I lost the baby and the ability to have more.” She looked to Kelly, his eyes were closed and she saw tears streaming down his face. She quickly looked away again.

 

“Then Nick died. It was like the universe was punishing me or something. That broke me, I mean, completely broke me. Harry had no choice but to commit me for a while.” She looked at Kelly looking at her, complete anguish across his face. 

 

“A letter arrived from Nick after that. All soldiers write them to their loved ones, just in case.”

 

“Yeah, we have them too,” Kelly admitted.

 

“He told me how much he loved me and promised he’d be watching me, keeping me safe from wherever he was. He told me he would send someone special to me when the time was right, someone that would love me as much as he did. That’s what got me back into the world, back to work, back to life.” She nodded to herself.

 

“When I met you, I thought maybe, just maybe the universe was saying ‘hey, sorry for all we’ve put you through, he’s your reward.’ That maybe Nick had kept his promise. But then Hadley shot you and I thought you were dead. That’s when I realised the universe was just dangling something good in front of me but letting me know it could be snatched away at any second.” She stood up and turned her back to him, looking out over the lake. 

 

“If I allow myself to really fall for you and something happens to you? I wouldn’t survive that. I mean, why can’t I fall for, I don’t know, an accountant or something? Someone safe? Someone that doesn’t run into danger for a living?” She asked firing up again. 

 

“Hadley was right,” Kelly said, standing and walking over to her. He gently turned her face to look at him. “You are a survivor.” 

 

“I’m damaged.” She whispered. She’d expected him to turn away from her after she told him everything. 

 

“No,” Kelly answered firmly. “Listen to me carefully. Yes, the world has thrown some major shit at you, shit that would have killed anyone else. You truly are remarkable. I knew that the moment I laid eyes on you. I knew I would fall in love with you, it was this complete truth that I felt deep down. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up.” He leaned down and kissed her. He kissed her deep and long until they were both panting for air. 

 

“I promise you this,” He said placing his forehead to hers. “That I will do absolutely everything in my power to always come home to you. That even when my time does come, soon or many, many years from now, that I will fight death till the very last second just to get to you. You’re all I think about, all I want. I see you too. Tell me you feel the same.” He begged. 

 

Jodie was crying so much she could barely answer him. Nodding her head frantically, she threw her arms around his neck. “I love you.” She hiccupped. 

 

“Besides, accountants can be dangerous too, they usually end up working with the mob.” Kelly grinned. Jodie laughed. 

 

-//-

 

They spent the rest of the day having a picnic by the lake, just talking and being lazy. It was late afternoon before they headed back to the city. This time Jodie had her arms wrapped around him tight, her hands under his shirt plastered to his skin, leaving no space between them while they rode the bike.Kelly couldn’t keep his grin at bay and Jodie felt lighter than she had done in years. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to hear what you think so far. :)


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